Longing for You (2023) Episode 3

Longing for You episode 3 starts with Young-woon interrogating Jin-woo and asking about the feet pictures. Jin-sung gets impatient and barges in. He takes over the questioning and Jin-woo finally admits to taking the photos.

He explains he has been fascinated with feet since he was five years old. His mom had planned to leave him at a play park. At the time, Young-hee was struggling to raise two kids and figured she could abandon Jin-woo. After being left in the park, Jin-woo fell trying to chase after his mom. All he could see were people’s heels as they walked past him. This was how his fascination with feet was born. 

Jin-sung is surprised to learn this and walks out of the room. Young-joo follows him and tries to make him feel better. She argues that Young-hee ultimately did the right thing and went back for Jin-woo. Jin-sung tries to understand his mom’s situation at the time and remains optimistic. 

The case continues to heat up as the rest of the team questions if Jin-woo’s foot fetish makes him a killer. Young-joo is adamant that he is innocent and that they should continue to look into Min-gyu. Jin-sung interrupts their conversation and plays the audio of Eun-byul admitting she was not with Min-gyu at the Karaoke bar all night. 

She changed her mind after Jin-sung showed her the video of Min’gyu’s other mistress. Eun-byul claims she was with a fellow actor and close friend. She calls the friend over and he admits that he was the one with Eun-byul and he took videos of her singing.  In light of this new evidence, the police rush to get a warrant for Min-gyu. They also try to keep the new development from reaching the media.  

All these, stresses Young-woon’s mom since he didn’t return home. She asks Secretary Jung Woo-No to schedule a meeting with the Inspector General.

As they wait for the warrant to come through, Jin-sung drops Jin-woo at the bus and, sends him back to Woojin.  They are all relieved that Jin-woo is no longer a suspect. Jin-sung tries his best not to lose his temper and accept Jin-woo’s apology. 

After dropping Jin-woo at the bus station, Jin-sung gets a call from Detective Yook informing him that the warrant has come through. They rush to Min-gyu’s dental clinic and are surprised to learn he left for a business trip in the US that morning. Young-woon finds the timing of Min-gyu’s escape suspicious and confronts Ho-chul. However, Ho-chul points out that he is innocent and Reporter Park’s article in the media is to blame.  

Young-woon heads back to his team and asks one of them to book him a flight to the US. He is intent on catching Min-gyu. As they talk, Hee-joo walks in looking for a fight with Young-woon for doubting her dad. 

Jin-sung quickly puts her in her place and they get into a shouting match. Reporter Park stops by at that moment and experiences Jin-sung’s wrath firsthand. He tries to land a punch on Jin-sung but ends up accidentally hitting Young-woon. This causes Young-woon’s heart rate to rise and his mom watches the whole encounter.

Young-woon quickly leaves to calm down and his mom calls him to Ho-chul’s office. They ask him to slow down but he refuses.  On her way out, Reporter Park stops her and they talk about Young-woon. Reporter Park says that Young-woon has no desire to live as an elitist and Jung-soon shares her worry over him working at the prosecutor’s office. She makes it clear that she will make Young-woon quit one way or another. 

She then asks Reporter Park why he rarely drops by the house anymore. He blames the nature of his job and she invites him to the house. Once Reporter Park leaves, she questions whether he is dedicated to his work or has an inferiority complex towards Young-woon. Secretary Jung argues it is probably both. 

Elsewhere in Woojin, Young-hee warmly welcomes Jin-woo and prepares him a meal. He is touched and thanks her and Young-choon for giving him an alibi. His mom is not worried about it but is concerned about the rumours. She threatens to handle all her naysayers and leaves to get her hair dyed at the salon. While at the salon, she runs into one of the gossipers and puts her in her place.  She also gets into a competition with Jang-mi over Young-choon. 

They agree to settle their differences by cleaning anchovies. The one who cleans the most anchovies in the specified period wins Young-choon’s affection. The competition starts well but Young-hee pulls a foul move when she sees Jang-mi is about to win. They get into another fight and Jang-mi gives up on the man since he is indecisive. 

Meanwhile, Young-woon prepares to leave for the U.S. to arrest Min-gyu. He asks his driver not to report his trip to his mom. He then calls Young-joo and asks her to tighten the evidence and secure loose ends in the investigation. 

On the other hand, Jin-sung gets a call from the young actor who testified he spent the night with Eun-byul at a karaoke bar. The young actor informs him that he is withdrawing his statement. He stops by the station with his attorney and tries to explain that he lied during his testimony. They offer him protection but he insists he is not being threatened. He claims to have reached this decision after being overwhelmed with guilty. 

Once again, the case is back to square one with Min-gyu’s alibi testimony withstanding.  The investigators feel disappointed but motivated to keep on. Good news comes across their desk when they finally find the man behind the Lemontree account. Jin-sung is shocked to hear that the man is Lee Sung-yong. 

One of the workers he interviewed at Min-gyu’s dental clinic. Detective Yook calls with even more good news, they found the cafe with the IP address Lemontree connected to.  They confirm that the PC cafe is located around Lee Sung-yong’s neighbourhood.  Jin-sung advises Detective Yook to check Lee Sung-yong’s address and promises to meet him there. He orders Young-joo to dig further into Lee Sung-yong. The rest of the team is surprised by Jin-sung’s authoritative streak but Young-joo comes to his defense. 

Detective Yook is the first to arrive at Lee Sung-yong’s house but, the landlord proves to be a pain to deal with. Luckily, Jin-sung soon arrives and smoothes things over with his charm. The landlord lets them into Lee Sung-yong’s apartment and they find ketamine, a knife and photos of the victims’ bodies. Jin-sung calls Young-woon and informs him of the new developments. 

The team starts narrowing in on Lee Sung-yong and finds out as much as they can about him. Lee Sung-yong is a former chef, convicted twice for sex crimes. His height and shoe size all match the killer’s.  Apart from the evidence found in his house, video footage proves he was in Woojin on the day of the murder.  He drove Min-gyu’s car and went into the Woojin Mart.  The team is convinced that Lee Sung-yong is their guy and Young-woon declares the case as a public investigation.

They need the public’s help to arrest Sung-yong and start working on the due process. They release a statement to the public asking for help to catch a wanted man. Young-joo wonders if she is a bad investigator because she was so certain Min-gyu was guilty. Young-woon comforts her and tells her they all make mistakes. 

In the meantime, Sung-yong feels the pressure as the public and the police hunt for him. Someone reports seeing him at a hotel but by the time Jin-sung and Detective Yook get there, Sung-yong is dead.  They find a suicide note where Sung-yong takes credit for killing the three women and seeks forgiveness. A handwriting analysis is done on the note and all doubts are laid to rest. The team declares the case as closed and sends a report. 

To congratulate the team, Hoc-chul invites them to a team dinner. Young-woon holds a press conference and answers the media’s questions. Jin-woo watches the press conference at the restaurant in Woojin. His facial expression is hard to pin down but he doesn’t seem happy or relieved.  He later texts Jin-sung, congratulating and thanking him.

At the team dinner, Reporter Park is also present, why? We have no idea but he and Jin-sung bury the hatchet.  As the party continues, Jin-sung confides in Detective Yook that he thinks there is something wrong with Young-woon. Detective Yook thinks Jin-sung is being jealous and says as much. As always, Reporter Park secretly listens and watches.

Later, Young-woon admits to Young-joo that he finds it odd how the case was perfectly wrapped suddenly. He worries that Jin-woo would have still been a suspect if the case had not been solved on time.  After his conversation with Young-joo, Young-woon heads to the toilet and runs into Reporter Park. 

The reporter wants Young-woon to thank him for writing a good article about him in the papers. Young-woon refuses to thank him and says he doesn’t expect any favours. Reporter Park makes a snide remark about Young-woon having it all. Young-woon clarifies what he meant and they move on to talk about the punch. Reporter Park apologizes and admits he was worried about Jung-sook. Young-woon tells him it is all good and invites him to the house.

The dinner comes to a jubilant end and Young-woon and Jin-sung apologise to each other. Jin-sung insists on taking Young-joo home. On their walk home, he casually proposes making her trip. She teases him saying they are like siblings so it would be wrong for them to get together. He takes it all his in stride and carries her on his back as they reminisce about the good old days. 

On the other hand, Young-woon gets home and his parents try to convince him to quit his job and move to America. They are concerned about his wealth and the fact that he is the only heir they have. His mom is adamant that he must remain vigilant and mindful of his health. Young-woon promises to tell them if he gets worse and leaves for his room. Secretary Jung joins him and they talk about the case. They make plans to hang out soon.

After closing the case, the team receive commendation and  Jin-sung is also given a first-class promotion. Even though Jin-sung plays it cool, he is proud of himself and his achievements. He tells Jin-woo that the team can’t do without him. He even buys Young-joo new expensive shoes. 

Jung-sook carefully monitors Young-woon’s condition. She is worried about the side effects of the coronary artery bypass graft he underwent. Young-woon has an 85% chance of going into heart failure. They need to perform a heart transplant within the year if they wish to prolong his life. Jung-sook announces that they will start the life extension program immediately.

She and her husband meet with Secretary Jung ahead of his vacation. Secretary Jung mentions going fishing in the rain and they wish him a great trip. Once he leaves, they talk about how he is loyal and they are lucky to have him.

The scene cuts to Woojin where a man parks his car and Jin-woo returns from fishing. His mom informs him that she is going out with Young-choon and Jang-mi. Jin-woo stays behind to prepare a meal for Jin-sung and Young-joo who are supposed to visit later that day. 

Unfortunately, Jin-sung is invited to have drinks with the police chief and Detective Yook. This is a rare chance so he can’t turn his boss down. Young-joo also gets some paperwork that urgently needs to be handled. They video call Jin-woo and apologize, they promise to make the trip early the next day. As expected, Jin-woo is disappointed but understanding. 

He later gets a call from his mom asking him to prepare raw fish soup for Young-choon. He leaves to check his nets and see if he can get the necessary ingredients for the soup. It is raining heavily but this doesn’t deter him. On the other hand, a mysterious man follows him. Young-hee gets back with her friends and wonders why Jin-woo is not at the restaurant. She gets a call and judging by her reaction, it is not good news.

Jin-sung gets a call after his meeting with the Chief and the news immediately sobers him. The episode ends without us knowing what happened to Jin-woo.

The Episode Review

Secretary Jung and Young-woon’s parents are acting suspiciously. Did they order Secretary Jung to hurt Jin-woo? This also begs the question, what happened to Jin-woo, is he dead?  

We also have concerns about how this case was perfectly wrapped. It is possible that Jung-sook engineered everything to make Young-woon stop working so hard. There is also that nagging thought about her relationship with Reporter Park. She didn’t go off at him even though he punched her dear son. Something is not adding up.

The killer is most likely on the loose but why did Sun-young take the fall? Maybe the killer attacked Jin-woo for revealing Lemontree’s identity. 

The questions are endless, and this feels like a Pandora’s box. You think you know the answer then boom! Another twist drops and you are back to questioning everything. However, this is what makes the show interesting!